Flonomics

A genuine greeting can take any business a long way to gaining a lifelong customer — especially a brick-and-mortar retailer. While you might not have the resources to hire a store “greeter” per se there are plenty of ideas to boost your business with a simple greeting.

 

First, be sure to acknowledge each and every shopper. Greeting everyone might seem daunting but most people want to know that their presence is noticed and valued. Most research concludes that the less time you take to notice and greet a shopper, the more likely they are to stay. This goes for smaller businesses as well, but the trick there is that no matter who is assigned to greeting customers, someone always does. Even if you’re the owner of a bakery and your assigned greeter is on break, someone should be saying hello…even if it ends up being you in a flour-covered apron. It’s the effort and the enthusiasm that counts.

 

Second, get rid of the old rhetorical question, “Can I help you?” Most likely, the shopper will say no and most likely your efforts (despite how much you really do mean it) won’t come off genuine. Author Michael Gerber, said in his bestselling book, The E-Myth Revisited, that businesses that change their greetings from “Can I help you?” to “Hi, have you been here before?” have seen a 16 percent sales increase. International Corporate Trainer and Speaker Jeff Mowatt thinks this might be because asking gives the customer a sense of familiarity or reminds them if they have been there before. In his blog, Mowatt also said that the two best words you should make a point of memorizing are the shoppers’ first and last names. Or, if you don’t remember, it’s best to acknowledge that they have been to your establishment before — even if it’s just a simple, “Hello. It’s nice to see you again.” Not only does this work as a greeting, but it also makes the customer feel comfortable.

 

Thirdly, why not kill two birds with one stone? You know that people like to be greeted and that your business should have someone there performing this task, so why not maximize your opportunity to get one-on-one feedback? Ask your customers questions about who they are, why they came and what it is they’re looking for. As long as their willing to talk, you might as well find out — after all, this market research costs you all of $0 and you might learn some really valuable information.

 

At Flonomics, we greet all of our clients with a want and willingness to help them make their businesses better. Not only do we want to help, we’re dedicated to it. From the initial inquiry, answered within 24 hours by a live Flonomics representative, to the demo, helping you decide whether we are a good fit for you, Flonomics will be there. You can count on more with Flonomics.